SpongeBob and Friends – Gender Imbalance at Bikini Bottom

In my last post I said there were shows as bad at gender portrayals as Bakugan Battle Brawlers. In point of fact, there are many, but one of the worst is SpongeBob SquarePants. This show enjoys immense popularity. Having never watched the show prior to researching this book, I was quite shocked at the content. For the record, gender bias is only one of its problems. I found it violent, puerile and often disturbing. The sight of SpongeBob dressed in a black executioner’s mask and pounding what is thought to be a body several times with a shovel was horrifying to me, never mind a young child. But I digress. The issue here is gender balance and on that subject, this show fares poorly.  

Of the seven characters listed on the Website, the only female is Sandy. She is smart and adventurous and, as described here, not a bad representation of a female. The males on the show are not very likeable – Patrick is hopelessly dim; Mr. Krabs is abrasive, short of temper, and takes advantage of the overly naïve SpongeBob; and Squidward is a misanthrope. 

While the characteristics of the men are not all stereotypical, the show does include the dumb, gluttonous oaf (Patrick) and the angry, aggressive blowhard (Mr. Krabs). On the female side, the fact that there are so few women is problematic, as are many of the storylines. 

In background scenes, the characters appear to be predominantly male, although there are sometimes women present. Female characters generally sport excessive gender cues, like protruding breasts, bright red or pink lips, and strapless dresses.

In the episodes I watched, there were occasionally other females involved. Like the male characters, these females did not represent their gender favourably. Mr. Krabs’ daughter, Pearl, was regularly shown having tantrums and crying fits when she did not get her way. In an episode about her 16^th birthday, she dreams about jewelry and being the centre of attention. She and her girlfriends hang out at the mall, swoon over a boy (who virtually ignores them), shop, and gossip. She is materialistic and petulant and horribly rude to her father. Pearl is the stereotypical spoiled rich adolescent girl, focused on shopping, fashion and boys.

In another episode, Mr. Krabs’ mother is stalked by his archenemy, Plankton. He is shown holding her against her will in a robot he created and watching her every move on television screens. She is at first flattered by the attention (no matter how negative and obsessive) and refers to him as her boyfriend even before meeting him. When she later refuses his marriage proposal, he blames her for leading him on. She then beats him up. All in all, not a great step forward in depictions of male and female relationships.

In an episode called Grandma’s Kisses, SpongeBob gets ridiculed by his friends because his grandmother gives him a kiss on the forehead. He is called “Grandma’s boy” and a “big baby who wears diapers”. Patrick advises him to stop acting like a baby around his grandmother, telling him he’s “a man now” and it’s time he started acting like one. When he tells his grandmother he is a grown-up, she tries to manipulate him with cookies and attempts to make him jealous by lavishing attention on Patrick. SpongeBob eventually cracks (after a scene of babyish behaviour that is painful to watch) and, although his grandmother tells him he can still be an adult and kiss her, he asks her not to tell his friends about it.

With this one episode, we have stereotypes about women as nurturers and “soft” boys being “mama’s boys”, as well as a strong implication that boys should be ashamed of showing affection.  

Although adults watching this show may be able to interpret some of the scenes I described as humourous, children cannot. They understand the messages literally. And a 6-year-old who sees a boy being ridiculed for getting kisses and hugs from a female relative will surely take that lesson to heart.  

The characters in SpongeBob SquarePants – both male and female – show stereotypical behaviour, from the macho gang that laughs at Grandma’s kisses, to the quick-to-anger stalker Plankton, to the bratty Pearl. In terms of gender it gets a failing grade. 

©Crystal Smith, 2009